Jumbo Fisher

[Pygmy]

I was standing on a woods road on a friend's property this morning at daylight, listening to a turkey gobble, and I saw something dark moving toward me..It looked nearly black, and my first thought was bear, but as it came into better view I saw it was the biggest fisher I had ever seen..It crossed the road within 30 yards of me, so I got a real good broadside look at it...I couldn't believe the size..I'm sure this is an exaggeration, but I swear it looked four feet long from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail..It had to weigh at least 20 pounds..Impressive creature for sure, and they are getting more numerous here around Dogpatch...I talked to a fellow I know who lives up near Cameron, and he said he'd been losing his guinea hens to them..The guinea fowl roost in trees at night, but the fishers can easily climb the trees and pluck them off the limbs..

[Lawdwaz]

Killing machines!!  I smile every time I get one on the trail camera.........actually get a video last week of one with a bum wheel.  Seems the left front (drivers side) was being held up from some injury.  I'll see if I can upload a couple videos later; my work load is mounting at home. 

 

[corydd7]

I was doing some still hunting in 5H two years ago and saw a fisher the same size. He was on the move clearly hunting something.  I was 60-70 yards away and at first I was sure by the size and noise it was a cub. First and only I've ever seen.

[Water Rat]

Hey Pygmy..... any chance of you trapping for them this year ?  They are cool looking critters and they do get big. 

[Water Rat]

13 minutes ago, blackbeltbill said:

I have never seen a Fisher, but from what, I have read on this site, they are public enemy #1.

From a turkey nesting standpoint , I think coons and opossums are public animals # 1 and # 1a.

[Pygmy]

1 minute ago, Water Rat said:

Hey Pygmy..... any chance of you trapping for them this year ?  They are cool looking critters and they do get big. 

I thought about that  this morning...I'd have to read up on it..I know that I could get permission to trap the property I was on this morning..I have seen several fishers there and also several bobcats while I was hunting deer nd turkeys..

[Water Rat]

Correction..... public enemies  # 1 and  1a.

[Water Rat]

1 minute ago, Pygmy said:

I thought about that  this morning...I'd have to read up on it..I know that I could get permission to trap the property I was on this morning..I have seen several fishers there and also several bobcats while I was hunting deer nd turkeys..

Very nice.... good luck. Their fun to trap. I like making leaning pole sets. There’s no kneeling down on the ground to make them. 

[Pygmy]

2 minutes ago, Water Rat said:

Very nice.... good luck. Their fun to trap. I like making leaning pole sets. There’s no kneeling down on the ground to make them. 

Do you use conibears or leghold ?

[Water Rat]

1 minute ago, Pygmy said:

Do you use conibears or leghold ?

Conibears.....220’s or 280’s.

[Lawdwaz]

I just glanced at the title of this thread and thought; that sounds like a name that’d be great for an NFL lineman or a washed up Booze hag from DogPatch, NY.

 

[Pygmy]

2 minutes ago, Lawdwaz said:

I just glanced at the title of this thread and thought; that sounds like a name that’d be great for an NFL lineman or a washed up Booze hag from DogPatch, NY.

 

I don't know any football players....

[Water Rat]

2 minutes ago, Pygmy said:

I don't know any football players....

Lol

[Enigma]

I think it was 2006 a friend showed up at work w a roadkill one in the trunk of his car. Spring 2010 I saw one in the woods scouting birds, thick pines, came slinking along. Very close and watched it for a minute or two. They're big from ground level! Absolutely silent on their feet. 

Last week i left the car in the darkness on a walk for turks.  I hear this damn screaming, again and again, and I'm thinking what in the holy heck is that? Fisher! Very distinctive wail. My friend who owns the property asked if I'd heard em. Yep!

Very cool creatures. Getting more common? Just stay away from my poults!

[The_Real_TCIII]

32 minutes ago, Lawdwaz said:

I just glanced at the title of this thread and thought; that sounds like a name that’d be great for an NFL lineman or a washed up Booze hag from DogPatch, NY.

 

I immediately thought this was a story about one of Dans cellmates

[Pygmy]

9 minutes ago, The_Real_TCIII said:

I immediately thought this was a story about one of Dans cellmates

You know I don't kiss and tell....

[G-Man]

They were numerous here until the bobcats moved in . Then they dissapeared, asked dec biologists and they were going to be a bobcat study and see what relationships were. I'd like to trap them but season is super short and. Work gets in the way. They get big!

[The_Real_TCIII]

22 minutes ago, Pygmy said:

You know I don't kiss and tell....

Thank goodness!

[Pygmy]

9 minutes ago, G-Man said:

They were numerous here until the bobcats moved in . Then they dissapeared, asked dec biologists and they were going to be a bobcat study and see what relationships were. I'd like to trap them but season is super short and. Work gets in the way. They get big!

Yeah, we only get 5 days here...Perhaps with them becoming more numerous they will extend the season..

A couple of local boys caught 30 last season...Pretty good for a 5 day season...However, they have a lot of prime acreage to trap and also have the resources to obtain equipment, etc...They were selling their tanned pelts for $150 each, but when you consider  the cost of catching them and having them tanned,  they probably didn't make all that much $$$ on them...

[Lawdwaz]

18 minutes ago, G-Man said:

They were numerous here until the bobcats moved in . Then they dissapeared, asked dec biologists and they were going to be a bobcat study and see what relationships were. I'd like to trap them but season is super short and. Work gets in the way. They get big!

That’s the opposite of what I’ve seen in Ontario County.  Seems that they both arrived on my cameras at the same time, maybe 5-6 years ago??

I figure I’ve been using cameras for about 11 years??

[Culvercreek hunt club]

2 hours ago, Pygmy said:

I was standing on a woods road on a friend's property this morning at daylight, listening to a turkey gobble, and I saw something dark moving toward me..It looked nearly black, and my first thought was bear, but as it came into better view I saw it was the biggest fisher I had ever seen..It crossed the road within 30 yards of me, so I got a real good broadside look at it...I couldn't believe the size..I'm sure this is an exaggeration, but I swear it looked four feet long from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail..It had to weigh at least 20 pounds..Impressive creature for sure, and they are getting more numerous here around Dogpatch...I talked to a fellow I know who lives up near Cameron, and he said he'd been losing his guinea hens to them..The guinea fowl roost in trees at night, but the fishers can easily climb the trees and pluck them off the limbs..

I am gonna ask a stupid question.....well....becasue I am stupid sometimes...lol. Dan, sure it wasn't an otter? 4' is one big ass Fischer. 

[Robhuntandfish]

Did he look like this?

[BizCT]

We can trap but not hunt fishers, never understood that.

[BizCT]

42 minutes ago, Culvercreek hunt club said:

I am gonna ask a stupid question.....well....becasue I am stupid sometimes...lol. Dan, sure it wasn't an otter? 4' is one big ass Fischer. 

+1. 48" fisher would be the number 1 ranked fisher in North American history. IIRC, the heaviest ever was 20lbs.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

3 minutes ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

+1. 48" fisher would be the number 1 ranked fisher in North American history. IIRC, the heaviest ever was 20lbs.

if it is a fisher and that big he is gonna be out the cost of another full mount...lol